WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin recently shed light on his limited participation during WrestleMania 41 weekend, confirming that his brief appearance was due to ongoing recovery from a total knee replacement surgery.
Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show, Austin detailed his physical condition during WWE’s biggest event of the year. He revealed he underwent the surgery just months prior.
“Oh, man, I was just happy to be there. God damn. You know, I had a knee replacement, give or take, about four months ago,” Austin explained. “And for total knee replacement to heal up 100%, you’re looking at about a year. And so that was on December 4. So whatever the timeline is, give or take, around four months.”
Despite feeling “really good,” Austin acknowledged his significant limitations at the time, noting he wasn’t squatting normally and hadn’t even attempted to run yet.
“I would, I would imagine I’m about 30 or 35%, you know, not 100%, at about 30, 35% of capacity,” he estimated.
This recovery status directly impacted his ability to do more at WrestleMania 41, where his primary role was announcing the event’s attendance record.
“And so, you know, I did what I could, and just to be involved in the show, go out there and announce the attendance at WrestleMania, night one night two combined. And that’s what I did, and that was about all I could do,” Austin stated.
He also mentioned that earlier discussions with WWE about potential involvement were tentative due to the impending surgery.
“I mean, earlier in the year, we’d had, you know, not really discussions, just like brief, if you want to be there, maybe we can figure you in. And I said, Hey, man, I’m getting my knee replaced. We’ll see what happens. You know, when that time comes, the time came and I can’t do much.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit The Ariel Helwani Show with an h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
